


You Only Live Once

by HQ_Wingster



Series: Hogwarts Life [2]
Category: Assassination Classroom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Boarding School, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Cute Kids, Cute Shiota Nagisa, Developing Friendships, First Meetings, Fluff and Humor, Friendship is Magic, Gen, Hogwarts First Year, Magic-Users, Platform 9 3/4, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 20:11:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11192565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HQ_Wingster/pseuds/HQ_Wingster
Summary: [First year]On the long ride to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, budding friendships bloom between the muggle-born and half-blood first years. Shennagians could happen, but there isn't much to do when you hardly know any magic. So why not play a good game of..."Never Have I Ever"





	You Only Live Once

**Author's Note:**

> Something adorable and cute. First years coming together before school starts and making friends. That's adorable.
> 
> So, Nagisa already bought his supplies awhile ago and I didn't want to incorporate that into this fic. However, this story is in a series so I can always write a "Nagisa buying school supplies" fic later and rearrange the order of this series~

There was something thrilling, something almost rebellious about what Nagisa was doing. He had been waiting for this day for weeks. Ever since Koro-sensei stopped by to visit, Nagisa kept a running tally on how many days he had left before going to Hogwarts. Tonight was the last night he was staying at home. Huddled in his PJs, Nagisa crossed off the last day with a sharp, red marker. Smiling at the happy circles that expressed  _ September 1st _ over its heart. Scooting his office chair around his room, Nagisa wheeled himself to the door and took a peek outside. A light down in the living room. The TV was on and showcasing  _ something,  _ clearly distracting his mother from the madness of tomorrow.

Earlier during dinner, his mother didn’t say much. Ever since the visit with Koro-sensei, Hiromi had changed somewhat and for the better. She didn’t talk much as before but when she did, she said genuinely nice things. Her temper was still a strong part of her personality, but she was learning to control it. To Nagisa’s surprise, Hiromi seemed very happy and  _ almost  _ grateful that her son wasn’t attending Smeltings Academy. Despite the pretty coin that was sacrificed to tuition. Somehow and someway, Koro-sensei’s magic mellowed Hiromi out and she was quite proud that her son was taking charge in his life’s decisions. All Hiromi could do now was guide her son when necessary and support Nagisa like a loving parent.

To say the least, the change was startling and Nagisa felt bad that he was leaving his mother behind. He promised to write a letter to her, every other day. Hiromi chuckled at that during dinner and told Nagisa to enjoy Hogwarts. And if he rubbed his elbows with the right company, he’ll have a stable job in the future and Hiromi wouldn’t have to worry so much. Nagisa forced a small smile before sipping his orange juice at that.

And here was the boy now, quietly packing things away and shuffling silently around his room. Books, little balance weights, cloaks and uniforms, and a wand were balanced on top of each other as Nagisa nudged everything into a sports bag. He was going to a boarding school, and was this too  _ little  _ for travel? Nagisa didn’t want to carry too much, but what if he didn’t have enough of something. Clothes was a big issue, but Nagisa could always hide under his cloak. Would that be weird? Was it weird for someone to wear a cloak every day? Nagisa packed extra clothes. Just in case stuff happened. Thinking about it set Nagisa on edge, and he made  _ more  _ room for clothes.

Wand in between his teeth, Nagisa glanced over the titles of the books he’ll be reading for the year. He tried skimming through them before, but he had no idea what he was reading. Was Nagisa even pronouncing the words right? He tried mouthing the spell names, but was afraid that  _ something  _ might happen. It’d be pretty bad if his room suddenly exploded without warning. But besides the books, the new friends, the interesting courses, and Hogwarts, Nagisa was very happy with his wand. A cheery little thing with a phoenix feather core. Whatever that meant, but Nagisa figured that the wand had to pretty special if a cool bird’s feather was inside it.

It would also be cool to have a unicorn hair wand or a dragon heartstring wand, but both cores spoke to two very different extremes. Unicorns seemed too cheerful for Nagisa’s personality, and he didn’t think he was cool enough for a dragon heartstring core. The name itself seemed too epic for a little kid like Nagisa, and he was quite happy that he had a phoenix feather core. Birds had the ability to fly, to save themselves from a cramped cage and soar. The snug phoenix feather inside the wand was bound to cedar wood. A pale, rosy wood with a firm touch.

After packing his things, Nagisa carefully balanced his wand over his index finger. The warmth of the wood tickled his skin, making the boy wonder what kind of magic he could produce with it. Maybe it was the child inside of Nagisa’s heart, but he hoped that he could learn a few spells to help his mother around the house. There were probably some cleaning-spells out there. Ready for Nagisa to learn and use. That would be nice. Before going to sleep, Nagisa hugged his cedar wand before tucking it next to his pillow. Caressing it while he slept.

Early the next morning, Nagisa and Hiromi drove to King’s Cross. Holding his sports bag, Nagisa walked around the station. Looking for Platform 9 ¾. His heart skipped to an irregular rhythm when he approached Platform 9. And beyond that pillar was Platform 10. That meant Platform 9 ¾ had to be in between, but there was nothing. Just a mingling crowd of people, and Nagisa checked his train ticket again. No mistake to it. He had to board Platform 9 ¾, but it wasn’t here. Hiromi glanced down at the train ticket, asking her son if he had read something wrong. Maybe King’s Cross was the railway station for the return trip. Nope, there was no mistake.

Go to King’s Cross and wait at Platform 9 ¾. Nagisa glanced around. He still had a lot of time. Maybe he could ask somebody, but did Muggles-- _ non-magical folk-- _ know about Platform 9 ¾? Who  _ could  _ Nagisa ask? All around him, there was steam from passing trains and chatter from strangers as they went their own way. Nagisa had his mother, but Hiromi knew as much as her son in this business.

And then in the distance, a voice called out,  _ “Hey, Nagisa!” _

Nagisa had heard the voice before. He turned around. Cloaked under the steam from a passing train was a distinct redhead with a fastened Hogwarts cloak. A trolley of luggage and a scarred owl hooted from her cage, a black blazer draping the bird’s throne.

“Long time, no see.” The redhead tilted his head slightly, licking his lips with a pop. Hands in his pockets as he approached Nagisa and his mother.

Nagisa rubbed his eyes, but he wasn’t hallucinating. “K-Karma?”

_ “The one and only.” _ Karma’s arm slid over Nagisa’s shoulder and the two boys could’ve really bonded, but Hiromi cleared her throat and asked Karma if he knew where the right platform was. A whistle escaped between Karma’s teeth, and he jerked his head to a brick pillar between Platform 9 and Platform 10.

“How do you get in?” Nagisa squeaked. One glance from his childhood friend and Nagisa was already fearing for his life. “I--I mean,  _ we  _ aren’t running, are we?” The crack in the statement and the slight curve of the question weren’t intentional, but Karma was entertained and he ruffled Nagisa’s hair as if he said a classical joke.

Karma shrugged, and that was pretty much ninety percent of the boy’s body language right there. “You can run, you can walk, or you can do whatever. But to really believe that it works, you  _ should  _ run.” A Cheshire grin tugged the boy’s lips, and Nagisa planted his feet firmly into the ground. However, Karma was strong enough to drag his reluctant friend in front of the pillar. Massaging Nagisa’s shoulders. Get the tension out before patting the boy on the back and wishing him good luck.

Nagisa gulped. A tall, looming wall stared him down. Nagisa could approach the pillar slowly and run his down it. Inspect the bricks and reassure himself that his body will phase right through it. Or, he can take charge and run swiftly forward. No matter what the consequence was, Nagisa was sure that a surprise would come out from the experience. And besides, would Karma really joke about this? Possibly, but seeing magic for the first time from Koro-sensei made the world even more beautiful in Nagisa’s eyes. A test of courage. Magic showed him a sight he had never seen before, and magic was the only thing that can take Nagisa to Platform 9 ¾. Holding his sports bag tightly, Nagisa closed his eyes. Breathed and then ran. Sprinted two meters forward and opened his eyes when he heard a whistling train.

He ran right through the wall and appeared on Platform 9 ¾, where a cheery red and black steam train greeted him as it approached from the entrance. Already, there were a lot of wizards and witches and muggles their children mingling around. Owls screeched in the distance, flapping their fluffy wings and rotating their heads. Older students ran around, reuniting with pals and classmates. Some people wore robes and their cloaks, some people wore interesting colors and clothes that Nagisa had never seen before, and a lot of people were dressed normally.

Anxious Muggle-borns stayed with their families, huddled next to their parents. Scared of what the first year will bring. Stumbling forward, Nagisa placed his sports bag over his feet as he gazed around the platform. Hot, autumn orange shone through the glass windows on the ceiling. Embodying everyone with the spirit of a warm phoenix. Nagisa had never seen or met a phoenix before, but he imagined the warm, fuzzy feeling from the sun was just like them.

Behind Nagisa arrived his mother and Karma. Karma pushed his trolley forward, whistling between his teeth and showing Nagisa around. Hiromi didn’t know where to start. Didn’t know where to begin with her questions when she saw the interesting characters at the platform with her and the boys. All of this seemed so surreal, but all of this  _ was  _ real. Close enough for her touch, but Hiromi kept a healthy distance away. A little taken back by all the new sights and sounds around her. This wasn’t her world to touch.

Nagisa tugged his hand out from Karma’s grasp, telling the boy that he wanted to say “Goodbye” to his mother before she had to leave. Karma raised an eyebrow. Judging by how relaxed the redhead was, Karma probably came to Platform 9 ¾ a lot. And for people like Nagisa and his mother, this sudden craziness was too much for the system. Nagisa knew he would get used to it, but his mother didn’t feel like she belonged here. And so, the little boy ran back to Hiromi and hugged her tightly before letting go.

“You’ll eat three meals a day, with a serving of vegetables at each,” Hiromi reminded him. Nagisa nodded, promising his mother that he’ll send her a letter on the second day of school. A crack of grin curved Hiromi’s lips when she bent down to kiss her son’s forehead. And then, she was off. Walking through a familiar brick pillar to go back to her world. And with that, a chapter of Nagisa’s life ended and a new one began.

Two hours later, Nagisa found himself aboard the Hogwarts train. Karma leading in the front, gesturing for his pal to enter a compartment with him. They were somewhere in the middle. Not up front to single them out as first years. Not in the back to call them out as ‘trying too hard’ to be cool. The good, old-fashioned middle. Someone was already in the compartment when the two came in. A quiet boy, eyes hiding behind his bangs. Asleep, nope. Karma sang a welcoming song, and the quiet boy lifted his head and watched the two friends come in. He made room next to him in case someone wanted to sit down.

Nagisa sat next to the boy, holding out a hand for him to shake. The two shook hands.

“Nagisa Shiota.”

“Ryunosuke Chiba,” said the boy, adding that he didn’t like his first name all that much. So in Nagisa’s mind, he decided to refer to his acquaintance as “Chiba”. Karma introduced himself too, and the redhead stowed his owl and luggage away before tugging his cloak off. Mumbling that his parents forced him to wear it, to show that he wasn’t entirely Muggle. Chiba nodded before resting his head against the compartment window. A light breeze came from the outside as the train slowly crawled forward.

“So Karma, you’re a…” Nagisa looked up, searching for the right word. “You’re a half-blood, right?”

“Dad’s a Muggle, mom’s a witch. Nothing I can do about that.” Karma slouched in his seat, waving his wand around like it was a toy. The boys didn’t talk much about their blood status. With Karma’s evident stubbornness about it and Chiba’s aloofness, it was best to drop the whole subject before feelings were hurt. However, it was still interesting for Nagisa to learn about it. There were so many different words you could call someone depending on what blood they were, but it was probably rude to say more than half of them. It was an interesting quirk, an interesting observation of how people placed themselves into more boxes instead of none.

The compartment was quiet for a little while. Karma and Nagisa caught up on their stories, and the redhead talked about how his father freaked out when the Headmaster came to the house one day. Beaming, Nagisa asked if Koro-sensei did any magic. Karma shook his head, saying that magic was usually a last-thought move in case a Muggle parent was  _ particularly  _ stubborn. Chiba mumbled that no one from Hogwarts came to visit him. Why? Both of his parents were half-bloods that had already attended Hogwarts. Years ago. That grabbed Nagisa and Karma’s interest, and they poked and prodded Chiba until the boy simply closed his mouth and looked out the compartment window.

The train had already left London and was strolling through fields and thick woods. Students from other compartments walked down the aisle way, meeting with old friends or making new ones. Some first years were still looking for a place to sit, and in stumbled two more boys. One with a baseball-- _ evidence pointed towards Muggle-born-- _ while the other carried a plastic wrap of corn beef sandwiches.

“Excuse me, can my friend and I sit here?” asked the boy with the sandwiches. Without hesitation, Karma moved his things aside and gestured for the two first years to come in. In came the round of introductions and out of politeness, Nagisa referred to his new acquaintances as Sugino and Isogai. Easy names to remember, and now the party of three was a party of five. Enough people for one compartment. Isogai sat next to Nagisa and offered one of his sandwiches, but Nagisa shook his head. Saying that he wasn’t hungry.

“We won’t be at Hogwarts until this evening. A third year told me,” said Sugino, tossing his baseball up and catching it like an expert. An air of awkwardness soon followed. With three Muggle-borns and two half-bloods in the same compartment, you would think that starting a conversation would be easy.  _ Nope _ . Isogai munched through his sandwiches, and Sugino took a sweet old nap. Chiba was still looking out the window while Karma balanced his wand over his nose like a circus animal.

Nagisa just twiddled his thumbs. Maybe rolling his wand against his palms when he felt really bored. Just, no one felt like talking. All around the compartment, other kids were yelling or laughing or talking to one another like normal human beings. Not  _ this  _ compartment. Silence was as loud as yelling, and breaking it meant that something very important had to be discussed. No matter, the compartment became a little more lively when a nice, elderly witch passed by with a trolley of sweets.

Karma bought two of everything and shared his goods with the other boys.

“This is really nice of you,” Sugino mumbled, ripping the head off of a chocolate frog before it hopped it away. Nagisa averted his eyes, and Isogai whispered for Sugino to tone-down on the savageness.

On the other hand, Karma waved his wand around in circles. As if he knew all the secrets. “Since this is a fictional story, there should at least be some talking or the readers will think we’re boring.”

_ “Fictional story?” _ Chiba whispered, eyebrow raised but no one saw it. Crumbs from a cauldron cake littered around his mouth.

“How about we play a game until we arrive at Hogwarts?” Isogai suggested, shaking his head when Nagisa offered him a sweet. Isogai rubbed his stomach, whispering that he was already full from his mother’s yummy sandwiches. “What about a game of ‘Never Have I Ever…?’”

It seemed like a good game. An easier way to get to know everybody without asking individual questions. With sweets scattered about, Nagisa settled on a licorice wand and a bit of pumpkin juice. Lips puckering at the sudden sourness that slapped his tongue before a gentle lull of sweetness covered the initial jolt. Like a tender kiss after a collision from another’s lips,  _ or a better example was chewing on a sweet candy after licking off the sour covering _ . The other guys had a good laugh at Nagisa’s jolt and even Chiba managed to crack a smile as everyone-- _ except a content Isogai-- _ took their fair share of the sweets. Holding up both of his hands, Karma started.

“Never have I ever skipped out on the Hogwarts sweets.”

“Hey, no fair!” Isogai lowered one of his thumbs. “My Mom makes really good sandwiches, and I couldn’t say ‘No’ to them.” But anyhow, Isogai smiled before glancing towards Sugino.

“Never have I ever seen  _ real  _ magic.”

Both Chiba and Karma lowered a finger, and the latter ganged up on Sugino. Asking him why he didn’t go into the specifics, and Sugino argued back that he just said the first thing that seemed obvious. Onto Isogai’s turn. The boy was lost in thought before something clicked to his upbeat mind.

“Never have I ever been to Hogwarts.”

“We might as well all put a finger down because we’ll be there in a few hours,” Karma said and grudgingly, everyone else lowered a finger too.

“Never have I ever seen a phoenix,” Nagisa chirped. Everyone stared at him and not a finger went down. Nagisa explained himself, expressing his curiosity towards the magical creature and wondered if they might find one at Hogwarts. It seemed unlikely, but it was a possibility and Sugino backed Nagisa up on that.

Then, it was Chiba’s turn. “Never have I ever made a friend from Hogwarts.”

“We should  _ all  _ be lowering a finger.” With that, Karma comfortably did as he said and looked around cheerfully to the other boys. To say that they were all friends was a bit of a stretch, but they had already introduced themselves to each other beforehand so it was like they were friends. They were all closer than they had originally thought, and a small smile curved Chiba’s lips when he lowered another finger.

The game went on and on until Chiba was the last boy standing. By then, they all had changed out of their Muggle clothing and into their robes. Nagisa’s robes were snug over him and kind of baggy, but Isogai helped him. The boy carried some safety pins with him and carefully inserted the pins into Nagisa’s robes so that the shorter boy wouldn’t trip on the way out. Trash picked up and thrown away, they all crowded around the compartment window and looked out into the darkness. A full moon was above them. A towering castle standing on the edge was waiting for them.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading~!


End file.
